Author: Kristi Wilson

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Love Hurts

A few days back I read something that Max Lucado had written. He asked what would have happened if the two Mary’s hadn’t have gone to the tomb on that Sunday morning. I like how he thinks – he looks at the Bible not as a religious book but as a book about relationships.

Religion would tell us that the women went to the tomb of Jesus because that’s just how God commanded it to be. Not true, God has never forced anyone into obedience. We all have a free will and these women were no different. It was their love for a dear friend that drew them to the tomb not religious teaching.

“The Sabbath was over, and it was almost daybreak on Sunday when Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to see the tomb.” Matthew 28:1 CEV

Their hearts must have been aching. They had watched Jesus die. There was no one like him. Did they try to figure out how they would move the stone? After all, they were just two women. They didn’t have the strength. They weren’t going expecting to find an empty tomb and a risen Saviour. Their purpose in going was to properly prepare His body for burial since it had been so rushed when he was taken down from the cross.

“The Day of Rest was over. Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices. They wanted to put the spices on Jesus’ body. 2 Very early in the morning on the first day of the week, they came to the grave. The sun had come up. 3 They said to themselves, “Who will roll the stone away from the door of the grave for us?” 4 But when they looked, they saw the very large stone had been rolled away.” Mark 16:1-4 NLV

And when they arrived and saw the stone was moved and the tomb was open they were heart sick. Where was Jesus?

“While they wondered about what had happened, they saw two men standing by them in shining clothes. 5 They were very much afraid and got down with their faces to the ground. The men said to them, “Why do you look for the living One among those who are dead? 6 He is not here. He is risen. Do you not remember what He said to you when He was yet in Galilee? 7 He said, ‘The Son of Man must be given over into the hands of sinful men. He must be nailed to a cross. He will rise again three days later.’” 8 They remembered what He had said.” Luke 24:4-8 NLV

Now they remembered! Their grief gave place to joy. They had come to grieve, to say good-bye to the Man who had changed their lives dramatically. In their sadness they had forgotten His words that He would rise again.

Joy, absolute joy! They had to go tell the disciples that Jesus was alive. He had risen from the dead!

“Now hurry! Tell his disciples that he has been raised to life and is on his way to Galilee. Go there, and you will see him. That is what I came to tell you.”

8 The women were frightened and yet very happy, as they hurried from the tomb and ran to tell his disciples.” Matthew 28:7-8 CEV

I’m asking you to imagine that you were with those women. Place yourself there. Hear the message of the angels, watch the anguish melt away and pure joy fill your heart. Now do as the angels said.

Go tell someone that He is alive! We serve a risen Saviour!!

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The Power of Resurrection

As we approach Easter, our thinking has to be centered on the resurrection power of Jesus Christ. “Christ in you the hope of glory” as the Apostle Paul said. Truly think about that – Christ living in me! His life, His power, His provision, His strength!!!

What if Jesus had gone to the cross with the same attitude as many Christians today? “Father God, I know you said in your word that I would rise on the third day – I certainly hope so. I hope I’ve been good enough for you to do a miracle for me; I hope that I’ve been reading the Torah every day and that my tithes are paid up and that I’m spending enough time in prayer each day for you to keep your word! I hope my WORKS have made me worthy to receive from you.”

Hogwash!! Again to quote the Apostle Paul, “we are saved by grace through faith; it is not by works lest any man should boast but it the gift of God”. Period, end of story!

The new life we have in Christ is God’s gift to us – a gift! We receive it by faith and believe that God in His unconditional love and everlasting mercy has given it with no strings attached.

Now I can hear some saying “yes, God the Father did that for Jesus but I’m not Jesus”. You’re right you’re not but if you are born again, Jesus is living in you. Look at what Paul wrote to the Romans about living in the power of God.

“So now anyone who is in Christ Jesus is not judged guilty. 2 That is because in Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit that brings life made you free. It made you free from the law that brings sin and death. 3 The law was without power because it was made weak by our sinful selves. But God did what the law could not do: He sent his own Son to earth with the same human life that everyone else uses for sin. God sent him to be an offering to pay for sin. So God used a human life to destroy sin. 4 He did this so that we could be right just as the law said we must be. Now we don’t live following our sinful selves. We live following the Spirit.

5 People who live following their sinful selves think only about what they want. But those who live following the Spirit are thinking about what the Spirit wants them to do. 6 If your thinking is controlled by your sinful self, there is spiritual death. But if your thinking is controlled by the Spirit, there is life and peace. 7 Why is this true? Because anyone whose thinking is controlled by their sinful self is against God. They refuse to obey God’s law. And really they are not able to obey it. 8 Those who are ruled by their sinful selves cannot please God.

9 But you are not ruled by your sinful selves. You are ruled by the Spirit, if that Spirit of God really lives in you. But whoever does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to Christ. 10 Your body will always be dead because of sin. But if Christ is in you, then the Spirit gives you life, because Christ made you right with God. 11 God raised Jesus from death. And if God’s Spirit lives in you, he will also give life to your bodies that die. Yes, God is the one who raised Christ from death, and he will raise you to life through his Spirit living in you.” Romans 8:1-11 NIV

In Christ, we (you and I) have been set free from the law of sin and death. Yes, we will sin but we aren’t enslaved to it any longer – we have a greater power living in us, the law of the Spirit. And yes, our physical bodies will die but we will live forever with the Father. In fact, our eternal life started the day we accepted Christ as Savior. Because our spirit was born again and our spirit will never die.

Sin controls us as much as we allow it. We have power over sin.

“The Holy Spirit will give you life that comes from Christ Jesus and will set you[a] free from sin and death. 3 The Law of Moses cannot do this, because our selfish desires make the Law weak. But God set you free when he sent his own Son to be like us sinners and to be a sacrifice for our sin. God used Christ’s body to condemn sin. 4 He did this, so that we would do what the Law commands by obeying the Spirit instead of our own desires.” Vs 2-4 CEV

We were powerless but now we can do all things through Christ who strengthens us. When circumstances arise that make you think you “have to sin” or that you can’t resist or overcome, remember this – you are a new creature in Christ, old things have passed away and all has become new.

Paul wrote the Book of Romans to give us all insight on how God the Father sees us. He sees us victorious and filled with power. It’s not our own work but the work of the Holy Spirit whom the Father sent. He sent the Holy Spirit to strengthen and empower Jesus and after Jesus went to heaven the Holy Spirit was sent to do the same for all believers.

“God raised Jesus from death. And if God’s Spirit lives in you, he will also give life to your bodies that die. Yes, God is the one who raised Christ from death, and he will raise you to life through his Spirit living in you.” verse 11 ERV

The same Spirit of God that raised Jesus from the dead, lives in us now and He is working to quicken (make alive) our mortal bodies, bringing us resurrection life over the power of sin and death.

Thank God for Jesus’ resurrection and thank God that His resurrection power lives in us!

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Put A Little Love in Your Heart

A few days back I was sharing with you on kindness. The simple act of being polite is monumental.

This morning in my reading I came to these verses in I Peter.

“So all of you should live together in peace. Try to understand each other. Love each other like brothers and sisters. Be kind and humble. 9 Don’t do wrong to anyone to pay them back for doing wrong to you. Or don’t insult anyone to pay them back for insulting you. But ask God to bless them. Do this because you yourselves were chosen to receive a blessing. 10 The Scriptures say,

“If you want to enjoy true life and have only good days, then avoid saying anything hurtful, and never let a lie come out of your mouth. 11 Stop doing what is wrong, and do good. Look for peace, and do all you can to help people live peacefully. 12 The Lord watches over those who do what is right, and he listens to their prayers. But he is against those who do evil.” I Peter 3:8-12 ERV

Basically – enough said!

If we would just follow this instruction on a daily basis our lives would be honoring to the Lord and our relationship with others would be enhanced.

Jesus told his disciples that our words are like seeds that cause fruit to grow in our lives. Either good fruit or bad, the choice is ours. Solomon said the same thing in Proverbs and James said if we learn to control our tongues we are mature people.

“I tell you that everyone will have to answer for all the careless things they have said. This will happen on the day of judgment. 37 Your words will be used to judge you. What you have said will show whether you are right or whether you are guilty.” Matthew 12:36-38 ERV (Jesus words)

“Make your words good— you will be glad you did. 21 Words can bring death or life!
 Talk too much, and you will eat everything you say.” Proverbs 18:20-21 CEV (Solomon’s words)

“It is the same with our tongue. It is a small part of the body, but it can boast about doing great things.

A big forest fire can be started with only a little flame. 6 The tongue is like a fire. It is a world of evil among the parts of our body. It spreads its evil through our whole body and starts a fire that influences all of life. It gets this fire from hell.

7 Humans have control over every kind of wild animal, bird, reptile, and fish, and they have controlled all these things. 8 But no one can control the tongue. It is wild and evil, full of deadly poison. 9 We use our tongues to praise our Lord and Father, but then we curse people who were created in God’s likeness. 10 These praises and curses come from the same mouth. My brothers and sisters, this should not happen. 11 Do good water and bad water flow from the same spring? Of course not. 12 My brothers and sisters, can a fig tree make olives? Or can a grapevine make figs? No, and a well full of salty water cannot give good water.

13 Are there any among you who are really wise and understanding? Then you should show your wisdom by living right. You should do what is good with humility. A wise person does not boast.” James 3:5-13 ERV

Scripture is pretty tough when it comes to the words we speak!

We are to be examples of Jesus so let’s stop and think before we speak. Let’s cultivate good fruit for our lives. Let’s speak words of kindness, things that will build others up and not tear them down.

Let’s be kind!

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Live What You Preach

Writing yesterday’s blog was a real challenge!

We left home on Friday morning and headed to Yuma. We were going to be there less than 24 hours and then would head to Picacho Peak to meet Kim and Austin for another less than 24 hour stop so I decided there was no need to take the laptop, I could do everything from my phone.

About half way to Yuma I thought I could take advantage of the driving time to put a few ideas in draft form and develop them further for Sunday morning’s blog. You see I had already written Saturday morning’s and had it scheduled to post on time. When I went to log in, my password didn’t do the auto-fill process. I’m not good with remembering my passwords so I tried several times with what I thought was right but no success.

When all else fails request a new password. I did that…several times and the email confirming a password change never came through. By now I’ve been fiddling with this for almost an hour as Dave was driving. Finally, I had success. New password confirmed and I was in.

I wrote for a while but didn’t have enough time to complete the posting so I saved and decided to come back to it later. Now, if truth be told this probably wouldn’t have been a problem for most of you. You have much more computer knowledge than I do but I was reminded of something I learned years ago – the Lord only allows me to teach things that I have already learned to walk out. In this case, it was the lesson of being joyful in every situation, avoiding frustration and trusting the Lord to work everything out.

So the saga continues. Saturday morning after we left the hotel in Yuma and headed out for the campground several hours down the road I decided to get back to it. You guessed it, my password didn’t work. But this time I knew how to reset it quicker and I was ready to edit and include the story about the kind people at the hotel. My texting skills leave a lot to be desired so everything I was writing was the hunt and peck method with many, many stops to make necessary corrections. I am more skilled with my full keyboard.

Just as I got to the last two paragraphs and was looking for a photo to include in the post my phone completely died. I had not been watching the battery level. Double yikes!! I determined I would just wait and finish it in the morning so I enjoyed the evening with Dave and our kids and put it aside. Before bed my daughter brought the coffee maker outside so I could have coffee while I finished my blog. It would be perfect. I made sure my slippers and robe were where I could find them easily in the dark and I was ready for morning.

About 5 am Glory and I got up. We headed outside and I grabbed an extra robe to put over my lap while I enjoyed the early morning quiet of the campground. Glory and I took a short walk, she got her breakfast and I made a cup of coffee and opened my phone to add the finishing touches. Those last two paragraphs were gone. Really!

“Lord, you know this challenge is really beginning to annoy me.”

“Look around Kristi. Do You see me here? Can You sense my presence? I did this for you. I want you to enjoy it. Happy Anniversary.”

“Thank you Father. I love what You’ve done with the place.”

I recreated the last two paragraphs and did a search for an image to use. Found one, copied it and went back to the writing program and couldn’t figure out how to add a picture in the mobile app. No problem. Posted it without an image and then I just sat and took in the beauty the Lord had provided.

It was gorgeous! And the quiet time that the Father and I shared was amazing. It was cold but amazing. If everything had gone smoothly the day before I probably would have slept in – it was my anniversary after all. I would have missed the wonder of the mountain coming alive at sunrise. I would have missed the birds coming out to welcome the day. I would have missed an intimate time between my Father and I.

So when you read these morning blogs and think I don’t experience the same things you do, you’re wrong. The Lord never lets me teach/share something that I haven’t first had to live. It’s never just words on a page; it’s life experience.

“Be patient and trust the Lord.  Don’t let it bother you when all goes well for those who do sinful things. 8 Don’t be angry or furious.  Anger can lead to sin. 9 All sinners will disappear, but if you trust the Lord, the land will be yours.” Psalm 37:7-9 CEV

“Trust the Lord completely, and don’t depend on your own knowledge. 6 With every step you take, think about what he wants, and he will help you go the right way.” Proverbs 3:5-6 ERV

Look for the beauty that the Father is wanting to share with you today.

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Please and Thank You

Yesterday we had a very pleasant experience. We stayed at a Raddison Hotel in Yuma. Everyone we dealt with was very kind and polite. This was such a pleasant change to what we so often experience.

Is it just me or have the rest of you noticed that a large portion of society has forgotten how to be polite? Good manners aren’t archaic; they aren’t old fashion; they should be as en vogue today as they were 100 years ago. Saying please and thank you should be as natural as breathing; showing respect to parents, elders, teachers and those in authority is a sign of good upbringing. We shouldn’t demand, we should ask.

“You can be certain that in the last days there will be some very hard times. 2 People will love only themselves and money. They will be proud, stuck-up, rude, and disobedient to their parents. They will also be ungrateful, godless, 3 heartless, and hateful. Their words will be cruel, and they will have no self-control or pity. These people will hate everything that is good. 4 They will be sneaky, reckless, and puffed up with pride. Instead of loving God, they will love pleasure. 5 Even though they will make a show of being religious, their religion won’t be real. Don’t have anything to do with such people.” II Timothy 3:1-5 ERV

These verses were written almost 2000 years ago and yet they sound like the reports on the evening news. We need to raise our children and influence our grandchildren to avoid such characteristics as are listed above. It’s not our words that will influence and teach, it’s by our actions. Do you see anything in those verses that would point out areas of correction to you? If so, repent and change. Live a life that will be a walking example to those around you.

Make sure you are thankful to God as well. He and He alone is worthy of all honor and praise and glory!

“Offer praise to God our Savior because of our Lord Jesus Christ! Only God can keep you from falling and make you pure and joyful in his glorious presence. Before time began and now and forevermore, God is worthy of glory, honor, power, and authority. Amen.” Jude 24-25

Gratitude is a heart condition. Too often we fail to appreciate the kindnesses of others. It’s important that we don’t adopt the attitude that much of society is preaching – entitlement. When we feel we are “owed” something, we’re entitled to it for one reason or another, we often become demanding and rude. We really need to guard against this mindset.

“My dear brothers and sisters, don’t be fooled about this. Everything good comes from God. Every perfect gift is from him. These good gifts come down from the Father who made all the lights in the sky. But God never changes like the shadows from those lights. He is always the same. God decided to give us life through the true message he sent to us. He wanted us to be the most important of all that he created.” James 1:16-18 ERV

Every good gift we receive comes from our heavenly Father. It may bring it through the hands of an employer, a friend or loved one but ultimately He was the source.

Let’s show our gratitude but expressing sincere appreciation for the likenesses we receive. That way we can be an example of the Father.

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Told You So

Don’t you just hate hearing those words! They generally come when you’ve made a mistake and the person saying them tried to warn you about the outcome but you didn’t listen.

A few days ago I was reading about the Apostle Paul and some words of advice or warning that he gave to a ship’s captain. He told the captain not to set sail but his words of advice were ignored.

“Men, I can see that there will be a lot of trouble on this trip. The ship, everything in it, and even our lives may be lost!” 11 But the captain and the owner of the ship did not agree with Paul. So the army officer accepted what they said instead of believing Paul.” Acts 27:10-11 ERV

So they sailed on. Paul had no choice, he was a prisoner and was being escorted to Rome. Shortly after they set sail they ran into a terrible storm. The storm was so severe that the crew began to throw things overboard. They went days without seeing the sun or the stars. There was no way to navigate. They had lost their bearings but worse than that, they had lost all hope!

Hopeless!

“For many days we could not see the sun or the stars. The storm was very bad. We lost all hope of staying alive—we thought we would die.” Acts 27:20 ERV

And that’s when Paul stood up and said “I told you so”.

“The men did not eat for a long time. Then one day Paul stood up before them and said, “Men, I told you not to leave Crete. You should have listened to me. Then you would not have all this trouble and loss. 22 But now I tell you to be happy. None of you will die, but the ship will be lost. 23 Last night an angel came to me from God—the God I worship and belong to. 24 The angel said, ‘Paul, don’t be afraid! You must stand before Caesar. And God has given you this promise: He will save the lives of all those sailing with you.’ 25 So men, there is nothing to worry about. I trust God, and I am sure everything will happen just as his angel told me. 26 But we will crash on an island.” Acts 27:21-26 ERV

Kind of a good news/bad news situation. We will be saved but we will crash. Wouldn’t you love to have Paul as your traveling companion? (I say that tongue in cheek)

But here is the good news. Paul got a message from the Lord for all on the ship. Don’t be afraid – there’s nothing to worry about. I trust God and everything will be alright!

You may be in a storm right now. It seems like it has been going on forever. You’ve lost your bearing and all hope is gone. You are sure you will crash on the shore and all will be lost.

But God…has a different outcome!

“Don’t worry about anything, but pray and ask God for everything you need, always giving thanks for what you have. 7 And because you belong to Christ Jesus, God’s peace will stand guard over all your thoughts and feelings. His peace can do this far better than our human minds.” Philippians 4:6-7 ERV

“Finally, let the mighty strength of the Lord make you strong. 11 Put on all the armor that God gives, so you can defend yourself against the devil’s tricks. 12 We are not fighting against humans. We are fighting against forces and authorities and against rulers of darkness and powers in the spiritual world. 13 So put on all the armor that God gives. Then when that evil day comes, you will be able to defend yourself. And when the battle is over, you will still be standing firm.” Ephesians 6:10-13 CEV

If we trust God’s word, keep it as our primary focus, we will still be standing when the storm is over. Let God’s word be your final authority! He will save us from the storm.

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Through the Looking Glass

Do you remember getting to use a magnifying glass when you were a kid? My grandmother had one on her desk and I remember her showing me how to use it when I was in first or second grade. It was amazing the detail you could see…

There was a time I used a magnifying glass as a part of everyday life. I had a job once and it was my responsibility to examine an item for flaws or essential markings. I would go over the piece with my naked eye and then with a glass and list everything I saw on it. Very often I would find maker’s marks that no one else had seen. The people I worked with called it “Kristi Vision”.

Just a few days ago Dave and I were looking at something and he asked for the magnifying glass. Out it came and our examination of intricate details was in full view. This kind of magnification is a good thing. However there are some Negative Nellies out there who like to examine and magnify their problems. It’s as if they want to see only the worst and their tunnel vision excludes the best. That can be disastrous.

The last two days I have focused on, magnified, Psalm 40 and I would like us to finish up there today.

“I have not concealed Your righteousness within my heart; I have proclaimed Your faithfulness and Your salvation. I have not hid away Your steadfast love and Your truth from the great assembly. 11 Withhold not Your tender mercy from me, O Lord; let Your loving-kindness and Your truth continually preserve me! 12 For innumerable evils have compassed me about; my iniquities have taken such hold on me that I am not able to look up. They are more than the hairs of my head, and my heart has failed me and forsaken me. 13 Be pleased, O Lord, to deliver me; O Lord, make haste to help me!
14 Let them be put to shame and confounded together who seek and require my life to destroy it; let them be driven backward and brought to dishonor who wish me evil and delight in my hurt! 15 Let them be desolate by reason of their shame who say to me, Aha, aha! 16 Let all those that seek and require You rejoice and be glad in You; let such as love Your salvation say continually, The Lord be magnified! 17 [As for me] I am poor and needy, yet the Lord takes thought and plans for me. You are my Help and my Deliverer. O my God, do not tarry!” Psalm 40:10-17 AMP

You’ll notice King David pointed out the problems he was having and there were quite a few but in verse sixteen he changed his focus. Let the Lord be magnified. It is always appropriate to magnify the Lord and recognize that He truly is our Help and Deliverer! He centered in on all that the Lord had done for Him in the past. He stopped looking at his circumstances and looked at his deliverance.

God has not changed – He remains the same yesterday, today and forever. His word has promised to bring us out with victory when our enemies attack – “You are of God, little children, and have overcome them, because He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world.” I John 4:4 NKJV

“But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. 58 Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your labor is not in vain in the Lord.” I Corinthians 15:57-58 NJKV

When we place Him in priority, when we focus on God’s word, His love and provision above our circumstances, we magnify the Lord. In looking up we find the answer to life’s most difficult problems and there we find our deliverance and our help!

Get out your glass, clean the lens and focus on the goodness of our God. Let the Lord be magnified!

Look up today. Magnify the Lord!

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Stuck, Really Stuck

Dave and I have been watching a show made for Australian television that focuses on a ranch run by women and the struggles they face. They have both cattle and sheep. It seems they are always out on a muster. At least once of twice a season they come across a sheep that has gotten stuck in the deep mud at the edge of the creek. It takes a lot of hard work to get them out. That happened again when we were watching the program last night and it made me think of a verse in Psalm 40.

I shared with you from the middle of Psalm 40 yesterday. These verses at the beginning of the chapter had a greater impact after watching the struggle of both the shepherd and the sheep on that show.

“I waited patiently and expectantly for the Lord; and He inclined to me and heard my cry. 2 He drew me up out of a horrible pit [a pit of tumult and of destruction], out of the miry clay (froth and slime), and set my feet upon a rock, steadying my steps and establishing my goings. 3 And He has put a new song in my mouth, a song of praise to our God. Many shall see and fear (revere and worship) and put their trust and confident reliance in the Lord. 4 Blessed (happy, fortunate, to be envied) is the man who makes the Lord his refuge and trust, and turns not to the proud or to followers of false gods.
5 Many, O Lord my God, are the wonderful works which You have done, and Your thoughts toward us; no one can compare with You! If I should declare and speak of them, they are too many to be numbered. 6 Sacrifice and offering You do not desire, nor have You delight in them; You have given me the capacity to hear and obey [Your law, a more valuable service than] burnt offerings and sin offerings [which] You do not require. 7 Then said I, Behold, I come; in the volume of the book it is written of me; 8 I delight to do Your will, O my God; yes, Your law is within my heart.” Psalm 40:1-8AMP

It amazes me how often King David talks about being in a miry pit (adverse circumstances) or facing enemies (personal or spiritual ones) and how over and over again he thanks the Lord for delivering him out of them all. It’s always something to sing about. David drew on his work as a shepherd as a correlation to the way the Lord provided for him when he faced troublesome times. He saw the Lord’s deliverance on more than one occasion; he lived it daily.

God was always faithful! And David was always ready to do what God had asked of him – he delighted to do God’s will. He had learned that in doing God’s will there was protection, peace and provision. It was a place of blessing.

The Apostle Paul’s greatest desire was to share the Gospel, the good news of Jesus Christ with others. He was always ready to share when given the opportunity and he prayed for opportunities. Paul faced many obstacles on his missionary journeys. He was thrown into prison, beaten, stoned, shipwrecked, lied about, mistreated constantly but he said the hardship couldn’t compare to being able to share the Gospel.

“He answered me, “I am all you need. I give you My loving-favor. My power works best in weak people.” I am happy to be weak and have troubles so I can have Christ’s power in me. 10 I receive joy when I am weak. I receive joy when people talk against me and make it hard for me and try to hurt me and make trouble for me. I receive joy when all these things come to me because of Christ. For when I am weak, then I am strong.” II Corinthians 12:9-10 NLV

Paul knew that Christ would be his strength. He knew that there was no situation where he was weak that the Lord wouldn’t strengthen him. Maybe you feel like you’ve been stuck in some pretty deep mud. Immobilized by your circumstances. Don’t lose hope! God is there and He will bring deliverance and strength.

“Christ is the one who gives me the strength I need to do whatever I must do.” Philippians 4:13 ERV

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I’m Excited!

Yesterday I started the new book! Barely. There is so much to do in the beginning with the formatting, downloading templates, doing temporary key words, coming up with a title and synopsis. But it’s started.

Years ago when I realized that the Lord had given me an ability to teach and share His word, it became my goal to share about His unconditional love, His mercy, His grace and His gift of sonship available to us who believe that Jesus Christ died, was buried and is risen as our living Savior.

I saw so many Christians who were like I was; reading the Bible but not really applying it to their everyday lives. We had grown up in believing in a God that’s “going to get you for that” or “you never know what God’s going to do” relationship; fearing God and His retribution rather than living in His love. So I accepted my calling to proclaim the “good news of the gospel” to Christians. It was and is my desire to see believers grow in grace and in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior. It was my desire to see Christians walk in the full power of relationship with Christ. For us to receive fully from His blessings so that we truly are examples of Jesus, Christians, on the earth. It will be the goodness of God that draws men to repentance and not the condemnation of man.

There is nothing I find more fulfilling than sharing God’s word either by written communication, one on one personal interaction or teaching to a gathering. It’s my heart passion. These verses convey all that I desire to share with others.

“Lord my God, you have done many amazing things! You have made great plans for us—too many to list. I could talk on and on about them, because there are too many to count.

6 Lord, you made me understand this: You don’t really want sacrifices and grain offerings. You don’t want burnt offerings and sin offerings.
7 So I said, “Here I am, ready to do what was written about me in the book.
8 My God, I am happy to do whatever you want. I never stop thinking about your teachings.” 9 I told the good news of victory to the people in the great assembly.  And, Lord, you know that I will never stop telling that good news. 10 I told about the good things you did. I did not hide these things in my heart. I spoke of how you can be trusted to save us. I did not hide your love and loyalty from those in the great assembly.
11 Lord, do not hide your mercy from me. Let your love and loyalty always protect me.” Psalm 40:5-11 ERV

Look particularly at verses 8-10
“ My God, I am happy to do whatever you want. I never stop thinking about your teachings.” 9 I told the good news of victory to the people in the great assembly.  And, Lord, you know that I will never stop telling that good news. 10 I told about the good things you did. I did not hide these things in my heart. I spoke of how you can be trusted to save us. I did not hide your love and loyalty from those in the great assembly.”

So let me take the opportunity to declare again today – God is faithful, He is righteousness, He is my salvation and His lovingkindness endures forever!

Take time to read all of Psalm 40 today, it will be a blessing to you.

And I would appreciate your prayers for clarity of thought and no computer problems while writing this book.

God bless you all today!

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No Problem’s Too Big

I found myself praying this morning for different ones that I know are going through particularly hard times right now. That’s pretty normal for my morning prayer time. Recently I have been made aware of friends who are experiencing severe physical issues while others are facing career challenges and some are having their entire lives uprooted and their peace and joy on are the verge of destruction.

What do we do when our world seems to be falling apart?

Our God is waiting to handle each and everyone of these situations. God is able and I can hear Him saying, “Child, that’s not a problem for me. I can handle it. Trust me.”

“There is One Who can keep you from falling and can bring you before Himself free from all sin. He can give you great joy as you stand before Him in His shining-greatness. 25 He is the only God. He is the One Who saves from the punishment of sin through Jesus Christ our Lord. May He have shining-greatness and honor and power and the right to do all things. He had this before the world began, He has it now, and He will have this forever. Let it be so.” Jude 1:24-15 NLV

All through the Bible we have examples of God coming to the aid of His children. He brought them deliverance from the enemies, healing when they were sick, provision when they lacked, peace when they were in a place of fear and unrest and strength to be victorious in battle.

“My God will use his glorious riches to give you everything you need. He will do this through Christ Jesus.” Philippians 4:19 ERV

I’ve heard people make the statement, “I didn’t know what else to do so I prayed”. When they come to the end of their own strength, knowledge and resources that’s when many turn to God. I’ve been guilty of that too, however, the real time to trust God is when everything seems to be going right. Let Him take control then and He will keep us in a place of peace when the storms come.

I can hear some of you say, “Ya but you don’t know my situation”. No, but, God does!

There were three young Hebrew men who had committed their lives to follow God’s teachings and they were captured and taken as slaves to Babylon. They went through a time of training to serve in the king’s court. There was one thing they were commanded to do and they refused. They refused to worship the king as God. Their lives were threatened and here was there answer. They could give this answer because they had trusted God in the good times and they knew He would be faithful in the worst of times.

“King Nebuchadnezzar was furious. So he sent for the three young men and said, 14 “I hear that you refuse to worship my gods and the gold statue I have set up. 15 Now I am going to give you one more chance. If you bow down and worship the statue when you hear the music, everything will be all right. But if you don’t, you will at once be thrown into a flaming furnace. No god can save you from me.”

16 The three men replied, “Your Majesty, we don’t need to defend ourselves. 17 The God we worship can save us from you and your flaming furnace. 18 But even if he doesn’t, we still won’t worship your gods and the gold statue you have set up.” Daniel 3:13-18 ERV

So let me ask you again. What problem is facing you today? Is it health, work, family relationships, financial problems? Whatever it is, it’s no problem to our great God!

“So whenever we are in need, we should come bravely before the throne of our merciful God. There we will be treated with undeserved kindness, and we will find help.” Hebrews 4:16 CEV

God is faithful!

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